Tiberian Moonrise
by Z98
Summary: I believe it has swearing. Takes place after Tiberian Eve. About Tiberium and the Scrin.
1. Default Chapter

Tiberian Midnight  
  
Z98  
  
Okay, I originally was planning to write a romance piece involving Dr. Ross and General Conner. However, since I forgot to bring a copy on disk with me to China, I scrapped that idea and wrote this instead. It's about what happens a few years after the Third Tiberian War is concluded and involves the Scrin again. Also, any inconsistencies are because my memory isn't that good and I forgot something that might have happened before in my previous fiction.  
  
I don't own Tiberian Sun or Command and Conquer.  
  
Chapter 1  
  
Dr. Caroline Ross, head of the Nod Tiberium Technology Lab, and wife to General Richard Conner, the leader of Nod, was currently watching as radiation from Tiberium was mutating human tissue. "What kind of wavelength is the radiation?" she asked a technician. "Not alpha, beta, or gamma," said the tech, "It's more than ten times as strong as gamma though. The tissue is degenerating." "If it doesn't mutate first," said Carol, "All right. We have samples of tissue that mutate and tissue that are completely destroyed. We need to figure out why some tissue are mutated and why some are just destroyed." "Pretty rare for tissue to be just destroyed," said the tech, "However, this tissue is most likely to be destroyed." "All right, compare it with the other samples that were destroyed," ordered Carol, "Look for any anomalies or something similar between them." Another assistant started typing in the supercomputer. Information on the other tissues came up. "Okay," said Carol, "It seems that all of these samples have very high amounts of white blood cells." "Maybe the white blood cells kill the mutated ones before the Tiberium can fully convert them," suggested a doctor. "Possible," said Carol, "Let's try this. I want a sample to have three times as much white blood cells as this one here." She pointed at another chart. "Yes ma'am." "How long will it take to prepare it?" Carol asked. "Two hours," said the tech. "Well, since we all have some time to burn, let's go get some lunch before we come back to work," she said.  
  
Carol sipped the energy drink. After drinking them for so long, they were losing their effectiveness. She continued reading the report on the dissection of a Tiberian Fiend. The creatures had extensive nerve systems, as complicated and extensive as the dolphins that were all but extinct. A few were preserved by GDI, but that was about it. The creatures were intelligent. They were carnivores, which was obvious, and could actually eat the Tiberian Visceroids. Very interesting. There was also the fact that they had Tiberium growing out of their backs. The Tiberium helped in camouflage and offered some protection. How they grew on their backs was another puzzle that the NTTL was still investigating. She then heard a beep. She took out her palm pilot and saw that Dr. Boudreau had sent her a message. She opened it.  
  
Long time no see Carol. Anyway, we've been making progress in our study of the Tiberium vine creature. We lost several drones and probes, but we've been able to gather some information. The thing is incredibly resistant to armor piercing rounds and large shells, but bullets seem to be able to kill it with ease. I'm sure both of our husbands already know that. GDI is starting a program to kill as many of these as possible, but General McNeil has allowed us to build walls and pavement around several smaller samples. We've been studying those. If you want, you can send in a team to help us. Gabriella Boudreau Langley  
  
Carol smiled. She still remembered the time when Dr. Boudreau was her boss. She jotted down a note to assemble a team to assist GDI in their research. These days, since the peace treaty GDI and Nod signed, there wasn't all that much war and fighting. These days, it was the scientists that were fighting, fighting to defeat Tiberium. The Elite Cadre had developed purifiers that cleaned the air of Tiberium gas. That had helped greatly. With the air purifiers, the human race now had centuries before Tiberium made Earth inhospitable, and by then, they should have developed a way to end the Tiberium menace. That is if the Scrin didn't come back. However, GDI and Nod were also getting ready for that. Large mining colonies were set up to gather huge amounts of Tiberium to supply the materials to rebuild. That was actually starting to affect the total amount of Tiberium on the planet. Well, time to get back to work. Now they had to see if white blood cells actually did change the effects of Tiberium poison.  
  
General Richard Conner was sitting through another meeting. Generals Kristoph Kenneth of Space Command, Robert Andrews of Army, and Wulfe Langley of the Black Hand were present. "The reformation of the Black Hand is going well," reported Wulfe, "We are still currently training, but our troops are getting better and better." "The EVA training is also working well," said Robert, "We are currently building another space station, the Revelation." "Biblical," commented Richard. The generals grinned at the comment. "This will be the platform for our new Positron Cannon," continued Robert, "GDI has an Ion Cannon, we have our Positron Cannon. It will be very useful if the Scrin ever tries to come back." "What about the lunar project?" asked Richard. "Proceeding according to schedule," answered Kristoph. "Where is General White?" asked Richard. General Rebecca White was the only female member of the Nod Inner Circle. She was in command of intelligence. "Right here sir," said Rebecca as she entered, "Sorry about the delay, but I needed to confirm this. It seems there is discontent within the Forgotten." "What are they mad about this time," said Richard. "They just don't like us," said Rebecca, "An extremist faction is gaining strength. That faction could very well attempt to attack us." "What is GDI saying about this?" asked Wulfe. "They aren't happy with it either," said Rebecca, "They are currently trying to pacify them, but it just isn't working." "So what are our options?" inquired Richard. "I currently do not have any suggestions," answered Rebecca, "I'll notify you when I have more information to make an educated suggestion." Richard nodded. "Very well. What is the status of the Tiberium research?" "You should know sir," said Rebecca. Richard smiled at that comment. "Carol won't tell me. She says I need to get the information through normal routes, which means from all of you." "They are currently studying the affects of Tiberium of certain kinds of tissue," said Kristoph, "Also, they have been studying various types of Tiberium creatures. GDI is currently studying the vein hole creature. They'll probably link up with us for that." Richard nodded. That was quite true. "All right. That's everything. Dismissed." Everyone got up and left. Richard went back to the Command Center. They had moved again from the space station to a military base outside of Jerusalem. The NTTL had also been moved. They needed more room than the space station had so another large base was built by Nod Command for the sole purpose of studying Tiberium. An underground train conveyed the people back and forth. There was even a hospital where Tiberium patients were treated with treatments developed by the scientists. Nod had almost overcome their previous inhuman image. Almost.  
  
Carol watched with fascination as the white blood cells attacked the mutated cells. The large amount of white blood cells destroyed the infestation, but it was too late. The tissue still died. "Okay, we know that white blood cells will attack and kill mutated cells in their early stages. Now, we just need to find out how much white blood cells are needed to be able to destroy the mutation and still allow the tissue to survive." "That's going to be hard," said the doctor, "From the data we gathered, the Tiberium mutated the tissue too quickly. Even if we kill the mutation, we still have to replace the parts killed, which we can't do." "So we have to ask GDI to do more research on bionics," said Carol, "We're making more progress than them in actually studying the effects of Tiberium mutations. If we find a way to replace the destroyed parts, we might be able to use this as a treatment. Of course, we will still try to find some way to reverse the damage done to the tissue." "Reversing mutations won't be easy," said a tech, "We've found things that can neutralize Tiberium, but they won't be much help in actually curing a patient." "Okay, we keep going with this. I want a hundred more tests conducted with this procedure," ordered Carol, "I have to attend to another project right now." "Yes doctor," said a tech. Carol left the room and walked to another sector of the labs. She entered an area marked with a radiation sign. She entered the locker for women and changed into an environmental suit. She then went into an airlock. Then after that, she entered the actual lab area. Inside there was a massive environmental dome. Inside that dome there were samples of Tiberium, blue and green, growing. The dome was magnetically shielded to prevent any of the radiation from escaping. She then entered one of the smaller domes. Several scientists were currently cutting apart the plant part of Tiberium. This had had the crystals removed and only the plant remained. They were actually dissecting a plant. A laser sensor was analyzing the compounds. All of this was taking place inside a glass case set on a large counter. The scientists were monitoring the process using several consoles. "How are we doing?" she asked. "This is some kind of hybrid life form," said one of the scientists, "Its structure is like that of a plant, but there are certain mechanics that should be in an animal." "Such as?" "The first thing is that we seem to have a stomach that processes the raw minerals that it absorbs. We also believe that the crystals are a waste product of the plant. The radiation it emits is natural, and the radiation is caused by what looks like a reaction in the stomach. It looks like a mini fission reaction, though how that's possible I'm not entirely sure." "Is any energy being generated?" asked Carol. "All that energy is being used to process the minerals," said another scientist, "You must realize that the fission is incredibly small. We still aren't entirely sure how it emits so much radiation, or such a unique form, but it might be because of the process of creating the Tiberium crystals." "Incredible," said Carol, "Any luck finding anything resembling DNA?" "Actually, we're making progress in that sector. However, we still need more time to isolate it." "Very well," said Carol, "I'll be joining the dissection team working on those Fiends." Carol the left and went to another dome. The dead carcass of a Tiberian Fiend was lying on a massive table, also with a large glass cover over it. Robotic arms were in the glass and were being used to pick apart the body. "Report." One of the scientists looked up and recognized her. "We just finished with looking at the stomach," she reported, "We found the remains of a Visceroid in it." "Any luck with why Tiberium crystals grows out of its back?" Carol asked. "We think that Tiberium spores attach themselves onto the back of a Fiend and grows. When the Fiend burrows underground, the Tiberium leeches in materials to continue growing. We also believe that the Fiends might actually eat the Tiberium plant." "It took us all this time to actually discover this much about these Tiberium life forms," said Carol. "Before, we were too busy trying to kill each other," commented one of the doctors. Carol recognized him. He was another former GDI scientist that had enlisted with the NTTL after the war was over. Carol joined the dissection team. They removed what they believed was the heart and also two of the three lungs. They believed that two of the lungs were for actually taking in the Tiberium gas and the third took in pure oxygen, filtering out the Tiberium gas and sending it into the other two lungs. They were still studying how the Fiend did it. They worked for two more hours before they stopped. All the organs they had removed were placed in storage units. Carol had to go through a five-minute wait as magnetic forces were used to remove the radioactivity the suit had acquired. She then took it off and placed it in the bin where other used suits were. These would be cleaned further to ensure that no one would be wearing a contaminated suit. She changed into her lab clothes and went to get a snack. After finishing it, she went down to the hospital. She always felt a duty to help in the healing of the people there. The fact that she was a former GDI scientist did help when dealing with troublesome patients. "How is everyone?" Carol asked the attendant. "We're going to lose Patient 291 today," he answered sadly. Carol nodded. There was only so much they could do. However, Tiberium was unforgiving and they still had not been able to find a way to repair the tissues." "However, Patients 292 and 310 have been cured," the attendant said in a lighter voice, "We've removed the Tiberium infested livers they both had and replaced it. We've done several scans and they are not showing any signs of further Tiberium poisoning." "That's good news," said Carol. She went down and started helping the doctors.  
  
General McNeil, supreme commander of GDI, was actually bored. The only trouble spot that remained was the extremist mutant faction that wanted to go to war with Nod. However, he knew for a fact that they would lose. Just because Nod was no longer the evil organization they were didn't mean they couldn't win some minor war. Actually, the Brotherhood was making good progress in studying Tiberium. More than GDI was making. Many GDI scientists had resigned and now worked for the NTTL. The current head of the NTTL was actually a former GDI scientist. So far, Nod had abided with the peace treaty. Maybe this time Nod actually had a good leader. "General." "Yes Eva?" "General Langley wants to see you." "Very well, send him in." The new Eva mark II actually had a personality. She also had a holographic image that she could use to speak directly with officers. The image of James William Langley appeared. Now days, people usually called him by his middle name. "Hello William," greeted McNeil. "Sir." "So what brings you here today?" asked McNeil, knowing that William rarely traveled to the Philadelphia II anymore, not even for meetings. He almost always used a video link to communicate. "Gabriella's been on my ass to contain instead of destroy one of the Tiberium vine holes in Canada," explained William, "I gave her the excuse that I needed to talk to you about a sensitive matter that I couldn't trust a video link with, which I actually do have to do." "What's the problem?" "No problem," assured William, "However, I know why Nod is building that second space station. Remember that Ion Cannon that Nod has on their warship? The one that attacked Kane's headquarters at Cairo? Well, we just learned that it was a prototype for a Positron Cannon. I won't bore you with the details, I doubt either of us would understand it, but it is as powerful as our Ion Cannon, if not more. However, the cannon will be pointed out towards space, so we don't have too much to worry about." "A Positron Cannon," McNeil said thoughtfully, "Interesting. Why haven't they told us?" "They're probably going to tell us once they started installing it," said William. Just then, Eva appeared. Her hologram had long black hair and green eyes. "Did you say that Nod has a Positron Cannon?" she asked. "You should know," said William, "You record our conversations." Eva twitched her noise, as if in annoyance. "Well, for your information, I don't record anything when privacy mode is activated. Besides, I'm interested in this Positron Cannon." "Does she always interrupt meetings like this?" asked William. "No, most of the time she's well behaved," said McNeil, "Most of the time. While you're here Eva, why don't you brief the general on Nod's ballistic arsenal?" "Very well," said Eva in a defeated tone, "The Brotherhood discovered that the unknown matter in Tiberium is as potent as plutonium, but it seems that there is no radiation fallout. They've been using it to create a massive ballistic missile arsenal. Currently, we believe that they have over five hundred ballistic missiles. They are scattered around the world." "Damn," said William, "I'm surprised I didn't know about this." "We were lucky to get this information," said McNeil. "There is one more piece of information that you two might find interesting," said William, "It seems that Nod has revived their Stealth Soldier program." "What?" said McNeil. "Stealth Soldiers. Nod soldiers equipped with miniature stealth generators," said Eva, "Equipped with a particle weapon and an advanced combat armor. They're as hard to kill as a Cyborg Commando." "Any reason why they would do this?" asked McNeil. "Probably because they can," answered William, "Nod never had the chance to actually continue with many of their projects, so they're now using the peace as a chance to continue a couple." "Well, we have to take the good with the bad," said McNeil.  
  
Umagon woke up in a strange hospital. "Well, you're finally awake," said a man. She waited for her eyes to adjust and looked at the man. The first thing she saw was that there was a Nod symbol on his chest. She tried to get up but found that she was strapped down. "To hell with you," she said. "We expected you to react this way," said the man, "but you should know that the war is over. GDI signed a peace treaty with us." "Why should I believe you?" she spat out. "Just a sec," the man said. He left for a few minutes, during which she tried to get loose of the straps, but found they were too strong. The man returned with a communications device. "Here." The image of Michael McNeil appeared. "Umagon, you okay?" "Who the hell are you?" she said. "What do you mean? You don't recognize the blunt?" replied McNeil. She considered this. It did sound like McNeil. " All right, assuming you and Nod did sign a peace treaty, why the hell am I in a Nod installation?" "Because they have better medical facilities and more experience dealing with Tiberium poisoning than we do," explained McNeil, "Look if it's any reassurance, the person that has been treating you is a former GDI scientist. She's been using new treatments that Nod has developed, and they seemed to have worked." "What do you mean?" "If you have a mirror handy." The man placed the mirror in front of her face. She gasped. There were no signs that she was a mutant. "Kane is dead, and Nod's new leader is working with us, not against us," assured McNeil, "After they finish treating you, you're going to be released back into GDI custody. Just trust me on this." "I'll believe it when I'm away from them," Umagon said stubbornly. "Just at least try to be cooperative," said McNeil, "That way, you'll get to leave sooner." Umagon grunted. She wasn't all too sure, but if she got to leave sooner, it was worth it.  
  
"Patient 041 is awake," said an officer. Carol nodded. She had been treating Umagon for the past five months, and she had finally seemed to have recovered. They had used several radical treatments and procedures, but Umagon had survived and was well. There was almost no Tiberium in her system anymore, which was good news. However, she would have to attend to that later. She still had to finish this. They were currently working on controlling the mutations that Tiberium created. The information gathered from this might actually help later on in their search for a cure. Right now, the Tiberium was altering the structure of a muscle sample. It was becoming hard and strong. Controlling the effects of the radiation was made easier by the notes that Dr. Mobius, the first expert on Tiberium, had made. It was transforming it into something else. "What is happening to the muscle?" she asked one of the techs. "According to our sensors, the cells are mutating and reforming the very structure of the muscle tissue. Certain things are hardening and others are softening. We don't really know how that's possible, but we still need to run more tests." "Okay. Put this sample in storage and conduct more experiments," ordered Carol, "Keep all of the samples unless they become dangerous." "Yes ma'am."  
  
The team she had sent off the Dr. Boudreau should be arriving now. It was comprised of six men and five women. Each knew a lot about biology, chemistry, and Tiberium. They would be of some help to the doctor. Nod currently had an extensive archive of information about Tiberium. It was actually larger than the GDI archive. There were still dozens of men and women who looked over the information downloaded from the Tacitus. They had only gotten through 29% of the total amount. However, it was found that the Tacitus had more information on Tiberium based technology than Tiberium itself, which didn't really help the researchers. Still, the Tiberium power reactor might come in handy. She passed a window looking out to where several silos full of Tiberium were. Nod still had a legion of cyborgs left, and they were used to protect this installation. However, Richard had discontinued cyborg production. Carol approved of that. Every time she saw a cyborg, she shuddered. These cyborgs were once living human beings. However, the old Nod had made monsters out of them. Two soldiers passed her in the hallway. Nod uniforms had also changed. They were now completely black and looked sturdier. The new armor provided better protection from bullets as well. Carol entered the hospital sector of the base. She went to Umagon's room immediately. "Hello, I'm Dr. Caroline Ross. I'm the one who's been treating you." "I know," said Umagon, "One of the nurses filled me in on what's happened over the past few months." "Are you okay with the arrangements?" Carol asked. "I can't say I am, but it's better than being in the interrogation room," Umagon said with a smile. "We converted that room into a storage room," said Carol, "We're running out of space for all of our projects." "And what are those?" asked Umagon. "Effects of Tiberium on tissue, dissection of Tiberium creatures, and the study of Tiberium itself. We also have this hospital facility and we also research for new ways to treat Tiberium poisoning." "Was a cure ever found?" she asked. "No," answered Carol, "However, we are making progress. We are experimenting with a new treatment right now. It's still in the testing stage, but it shows some promise." "I never thought that I would owe my life to Nod," said Umagon. "I never thought I would marry the supreme commander of Nod," said Carol, "But I did. Now, get some rest. I'll check up on you tomorrow or have someone else do that. I've been kind of busy these past few weeks." Umagon nodded. Carol then adjusted the I.V. and then left.  
  
Richard entered his bedroom. He saw Carol in the desk looking over some notes. He walked over to her and hugged her from behind. "How was your day?" he whispered into her ear. Carol smiled. "Fine. Umagon woke up today." "Hmm, well, once she fully recovers, she'll be going back to the GDI," he said, "Research going along well?" "We're making progress," said Carol, "I sent a team to Dr. Boudreau to help with the study of the Tiberium vein." "Shouldn't it be Dr. Langley?" said Richard teasingly. "She never took her husband's name," said Carol, "and don't expect me to as well." "Of course," said Richard, "Anything interesting happen during all your research?" "You have to get that information through proper channels," said Carol. "So how about supreme commander asking a subordinate?" said Richard, "Or would you rather it be husband to wife?" Carol lifted his arms and got up. She let Richard hold her. The two kissed for a while before Richard went and got ready for bed. Carol was already in her nightgown and got into bed. She was very tired. Work in the labs was very draining. By the time Richard had showered and returned to the bedroom, she was fast asleep. Richard kissed her on the forehead and settled down himself. The last thing he felt before falling asleep was Carol snuggling up close to him. 


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2  
  
Carol woke up at about six. She found that Richard was already up and in the bathroom. She stretched and got up as well. Richard always was an early riser. He then came out and ordered breakfast. Carol then went in to brush her teeth and freshen up. When she came out, Richard was already eating. Today he had ordered bacon with scrambled eggs and several slices of French bread. He seemed to prefer them above all other kinds. "Why didn't you order any vegetables?" asked Carol, even though she knew what his answer would be. "I already ate them." "Liar," she said with a smile, "You need to add some greens into your diet." "I know, I know," said Richard, "but I do eat a lot during lunch, so don't complain too much." They finished eating quickly. Richard kissed her goodbye and he went off down to the command center. Carol changed into her lab clothes and went down to one of the medical labs. They still needed to finish up work with the white blood cell project. The teams were already there and working. "So where are we?" she asked. "We're preparing to radiate a tissue with ten times as much white blood cells as the one you were last here for," said a doctor, "We think that with so many white blood cells, it will kill the mutated cells before they have a chance to reproduce and spread to others." "All right, let's start." They watched as the radiation started mutating and killing the cells. The white blood cells responded quickly, alerted by the Helper-T cells of the mutations. They quickly consumed the mutations and destroyed them. "So it did work," said Carol, "However, how do we put it to use?" "We can only use it with people who have small amounts of mutations," said a scientist, "If they have large amounts of mutated tissue and such, the white blood cells can't overcome so much, and they'll probably do more harm than good." "We can let Department 4 handle actually developing a treatment," said Carol, "However, how can we apply what we've learned to other experiments?" "We know the white blood cells destroy the mutations," said a doctor, "What we have to do is develop something to repair the damage." "The damage is being done to the DNA," said another doctor, "We'd have to do genetic engineering to actually get down to that." "So we have to find what genes are being damaged, and figure out a way to repair it," said Carol, "I'll have more people with experience with genetics transferred to this project. How many of you here know about the anatomy of Tiberian creatures and plants?" Several scientists raised their hands. "Give me your names and I'll have you transferred to the dissection projects and projects that involve the Tiberium plant itself. The rest of you, continue working." Carol took down the names of the people who had raised their hands and went down to her office. She made the necessary changes and had her secretary notify the various parties. Then she went down to the hospital wing. "Hi, we okay today?" "Better," said Umagon, "At least I'm more refreshed." "That's good to hear," said Carol, "Now, I just need to take a blood sample." A nurse came in with the extractor. It looked like one of the air pressure injection devices. Carol took the sample quickly and took out the tube with the blood. "Take this down to the lab and have them do the usual checks," she said. The nurse nodded and left. Carol then checked Umagon's vitals and other such things. Everything was in order. "There shouldn't be anything wrong," said Carol, "I'll see you most likely tomorrow." Umagon nodded. Carol turned around and left. She needed to get down to the dissection area. She went into the women's changing room and put on another protective suit. She then went into the area. She entered the room where the dissection of the Tiberium plant was taking place. She found the scientists looking over some images. "What are those?" asked Carol. "We believe they are the Tiberium's DNA strands," said one scientist. They magnified the image. There were six strands intertwined. "How's mapping it going?" she asked. "We barely started," said another scientist, "Currently, we're trying to find a place to start. It's very complicated and we are having trouble isolating the individual strands. We believe it's because they are so tightly packed together." "Very well," said Carol. She worked with the other scientists as they began trying to isolate the strands. It was extremely tricky. The strands were stuck together and it took three hours before they were able to figure out a way to get it apart. Then, the strand broke apart. Because of another scientist's quick thinking, they were able to trap several of the pieces for further study. After that, Carol left the experts to their work.  
  
Richard was going over some logistical things when his assistant called him. "Sir, I have General McNeil, requesting to talk with you," he said. "Put him through." McNeil's image appeared on a screen in front of Richard. "How can I help you general?" "Nothing much. However, I just got word that you have restarted the Stealth Soldier project," said McNeil. "You don't need to worry about that," said Richard, "I'm not trying to be a threat to you or anything. However, we are just experimenting with our stealth technology. Nothing more. Though I'm not the only one that has revived old projects. I have reports that GDI is experimenting with the Chronosphere again." McNeil grunted. "Not surprised you found out. We're fine tuning it so that we don't mess with the timeline and such." "Very interesting," said Richard, "I don't consider it too much of a threat right now. By the way, how are the oceanic Tiberium harvesting going?" "We've managed to clear part of the Atlantic," answered McNeil, "However, we still have to remove the radiation." "We might be able to help with that," said Richard, "The NTTL has developed a water filter for Tiberium." "That would be greatly appreciated." Richard sent a note to Carol to send GDI the plans for the filter. There was no reason why they shouldn't share the technology. They were now allies. "Good day, General," said McNeil before he signed off. Richard pondered over the conversation. McNeil hadn't mentioned the Positron Cannon Nod was building, but he was probably seeing when Nod would announce it. As to the Stealth Soldier project, the Firestorm Taskforce probably were the ones who found out about it.  
  
Carol was concentrating intensely. They were currently cutting a piece of green Tiberium crystal apart. Fortunately, these weren't volatile. The crystal shattered into same fragments. "Damn." They were trying to figure out a way to cut Tiberium without actually breaking the crystal. However, that was becoming tricky. Carol wiped sweat off from her forehead. She retracted the laser and activated another arm. This one held a diamond cutter. She tried on another piece. This time, she was able to make the necessary cuts and the crystal did not shatter. "Heat caused the last one to fracture," said a scientist, "We'll have to use the diamond cutters for all other attempts." Carol nodded. They were currently experimenting with ways to produce the necessary Tiberium crystals needed for the various pieces of technology Nod was currently developing. They put the one finished crystal they were able to get in a container. That container was moved to another storage facility. When they manufactured more such crystals, they would start sending them another site where the actual building and testing of Tiberium- based technology was. "Dr. Ross! You have to come see this!" Carol looked behind her. A frantic scientist was trying to get her attention. "Just a sec." She took her hands out of the controls and followed the man. He took her into the massive dome where Tiberium was actually grown. The two forced their way through the many scientists and technicians present. He pointed to one of the isolated Tiberium plants. Carol gasped. This Tiberium crystal was red. "What do we know about it?" she asked. "It contains more of that unknown element," said a scientist, "It is also very volatile. We've already done some scans. The thing grows twice as slowly as blue crystals, and has even more concentrated amounts of the elements detected in the blue crystals." "Are more growing?" asked Carol. "We detect two other sprouts," said another scientist, "They will take several hours before they actually appear." "Keep tabs on this one," she ordered. Carol then left the section. She removed the protective suit and changed back to her lab clothes. She took out her cell phone and called Richard. "Yeah?" "Richard, we have something extraordinary," said Carol in an excited voice, "We have a sample of a red Tiberium crystal." "What?" "I don't know how it's possible, but it's there. Down in the domes. I'm not sure what it means, but I think Tiberium is evolving." This only confused Richard even more. "What do you mean evolving?" "Look we've already established that Tiberium is a plant," said Carol, "By harvesting them, we are also killing them, so they start evolving very quickly. We've seen how volatile the blue Tiberium crystals are. That just means that they are trying to develop passive deterrents against us harvesting them." "That is not good," said Richard. "Of course it isn't. We have to find a way to stop them from evolving further." "I'll order more of our harvesters to concentrate on harvesting blue Tiberium," said Richard, "Take out the more advanced ones before they have a chance to evolve further." "That's a start," said Carol, "But we need to find a way to neutralize Tiberium for good." "That's your department dear." Carol smiled. "I'll get back to you when I have more information." She hanged up and continued walking back to another lab.  
  
"General McNeil, General Conner wants to talk to you." "Put him through." "General McNeil, we might have a problem," said Richard, "Now we all know for a fact that Tiberium is a living plant. My wife has evidence to believe that the plant is evolving, becoming more volatile and dangerous to harvest." "What are you talking about?" asked McNeil. "We have a red Tiberium crystal in our labs," said Richard, "It is even more volatile than the blue crystals and I fear that more such red crystals will soon appear. I'm ordering my harvesting operations to concentrate on the blue crystals. Those are more evolved than the green ones, and they are most likely the cause of this new strain." "Damn," muttered McNeil, then in a louder voice, "We'll assist. We cannot allow Tiberium to grow uncontrolled. I'll have Dr. Boudreau sent to the NTTL with your permission to help." "That would be appreciated," said Richard, "We had better find a way out of this or we're dead." McNeil nodded. Richard then signed off.  
  
It had been five weeks since the discover of the red Tiberium crystal. So far, no red crystals had been found in the wild, but many people considered it only a matter of time before that happened. Even more GDI scientists transferred to the NTTL since they were better equipped than GDI to actually study Tiberium. Right now, they were working on mapping the genome of the Tiberium plant. Another group was mapping the genome of the mutated cells. It was all very complicated, and not that many people were sure all of this was possible. However, everyone worked on. For some, it was dead exhausting, but the information gathered revealed much. Other projects were underway as well. The Stealth Soldiers were replacing the cyborgs. Nearly all remaining cyborgs had been destroyed, which Carol approved. Their weapons were modified and could now be used by standard infantry, but nearly everything else was destroyed. The Stealth Suits were also designed to shield their wearers from the effects of radiation. That helped greatly. "Carol, we have enough information about the mutated cells to try something," said Gabriella. "What's the thing you're going to try?" asked Carol. "Well, we're going to try to mutate the cells back to their original forms," said Gabriella, "We can create some sort of virus that attacks the DNA and destroys the affected genes. Also, we want it to be able to cause it to transform back." "Is that even possible?" "We're trying," said Gabriella, "It's not going to be easy, but we're trying." Carol nodded. Genetics wasn't her specialty. She knew more about Tiberium itself than anything else. These days, she worked with the team dissecting the Tiberium plants. They had found what created the crystals. The crystals were a waste product and a defensive mechanism. They were sharp and supposed to help deter other animals, but most Tiberian creatures had adapted to counter that. However, the volatile nature of the blue and new red crystals were more effective. Carol finished eating lunch and then went back to the dome section. She changed into another protective suit and then went back to work. They had already studied the difference between the green and blue crystal plants. The only difference was the stomach and how the nutrients and such were processed. The green Tiberium plants broke them down and reformed them into the waste products. It seemed that the actual breaking down of the minerals and nutrients supplied the plant with energy. The blue Tiberium plant actually fused the nutrients and minerals together, making them far denser. That process provided far more energy, and the crystals produced had more radiation imbedded in them and was also more volatile because of the fusing of so many different elements. The other scientists were already getting ready for dissecting the stomach. They set up the instruments and sensors, making sure everything was tuned. After that, they placed the stomach in glass case. "We're ready," said a scientist. Carol nodded. They got under way. They first cut a very small hole in the stomach and inserted a fiber optics camera inside. They watched as the camera sent back what it was seeing. "Looks like it has two chambers," said a doctor, "sensors are detecting acids and other compounds in this chamber. We can assume that this is where the materials are broken down. Lets look in the other chamber." A man typed in used the small joystick and moved the camera into the other chamber. In there they saw pieces of green crystals. There were large fragments and small fragments. After a few minutes, they had seen most of the structures and other such things of the stomach. Now they had to cut it apart. Carol made the first incision. They then pulled a piece of the skin off. After making a few more cuts, they had revealed both chambers. Two laser probes scanned the compound of the stomach. After about a half hour, they had finished. The information they gathered was sent to analysts to study and go over. Other copies were sent to the main archives as well as several backup systems. Carol was exhausted. Several of her assistants noticed it. "Doctor, you should get some rest," said one of them, "All we have left to do is some paperwork. We can handle that." Carol smiled her thanks. She went to her quarters and took a long warm bath. When she came back into the bedroom, she found that Richard was also back. "Why are you back so early?" she asked. "My staff forced me to take a break," he said, "We've been working around the clock trying to diffuse the situation with the extremist mutant faction." "Is there going to be another war?" Carol asked anxiously. "We hope not," said Richard. That did little to assure her. Saying hope not was basically saying that there was no hope. "Don't worry," said Richard, "They can't risk attacking us without making GDI turn against them." Carol smiled. That was some reassurance. GDI had too many science personnel currently working with Nod that they couldn't risk them being in danger. She then got into bed. By the time Richard had showered and got into bed she was sound asleep.  
  
The NTTL had now committed a large container to growing the red Tiberium. They took several samples before they had started growing crystals and cut it apart. The stomach of this strain was even more complicated. It broke down the materials, fused them back together, broke them down again, and then formed them into the red crystals. "It almost seems like these things are samples of nature using nuclear power in plants," said Carol. Two scientists present nodded in agreement. They had never seen anything like this before. "What are ways to neutralize a nuclear chain reactor?" said one of the scientists, "If we can figure out that, we might have something we can use against Tiberium." "That might not be possible," said the other scientist. "We have to remove the fuel to the explosion," said Carol, "That can prevent it." "Have we tried to poison these Tiberium plants?" asked the first scientist. "You know, that might actually work," said Carol, "Providing they don't evolve further." Carol then left. She entered the main working lab. Here, the scientists worked out ideas and theories. Carol sat down at one of the supercomputers and started working. So far, nothing had seemed to actually halt Tiberium except the extreme cold. She checked several files. Tiberium growth slowed down drastically when exposed to cold climates. That might mean something. Carol checked the files on the composition of the plant. It was similar to several tropical plants. That would explain why it grew so well in the places by the equator. Of course, it still managed to adapt to the cold and grew. She jotted down a note. Perhaps if they exposed Tiberium to extreme cold, not just the bitter coldness of Siberia and Canada, it might kill it. They needed to find a way to contain Tiberium permanently. They didn't have to destroy it, but they needed to get it under control. Carol left the lab and went down to the experimentation lab. She then typed in her request. Several scientists down in the domes prepared the experiment. They took a sample of green Tiberium and placed it in a large room. They quickly turned down the temperature. The sensors and probes attached to the Tiberium showed that the level of activity within the plant was slowing. They turned it down even more. They were nearing absolute zero when the plant finally died. All activity stopped. However, this was still unconfirmed. They kept the temperature low for about three minutes. They then started turning it back up. After thirty minutes at 100 degrees Fahrenheit, the plant still remained inactive. Hopefully that meant it was dead for good. They would keep it in the room and record anything that happened. They had here potentially a way to actually neutralize large amounts of Tiberium, providing they could put this idea to actual use.  
  
Richard was not happy. The extremist mutant faction controlled thirty percent of the mutant military forces. They had just split off from the main Forgotten network. It looked like they were about to go to war with Nod. Both the GDI and the Forgotten were denouncing the faction as dangerous and volatile. Richard quite agreed with that. However, they would attack him first, not GDI or their fellow Shiners. He had just upgraded all Nod forces to Defensive Condition 3. Anything else and he would go to 2. If the faction actually attacked him, he would declare open war with the faction. How they expected to win a war with Nod was beyond him. They did not have the resources to fight a major war, and he already knew where their main base was. Bad security on their part. Or it might be a trick, but he didn't think so. He had three ballistic missiles targeted at the location and he could fire them at a moments notice. "Sir, we're getting demands from the extremist faction that they want us to give them everything we've gathered on Tiberium and to stop what they call our abominable research," said an aide. "Tell all units to go to Defensive Condition 2," ordered Richard, "And tell that faction that we do not consider them any sort of actual government or nation. They are rebels and even their fellow mutants have denounced them, so why the hell should we acknowledge them." "My pleasure sir," said the aide. Richard smiled. It probably was. Nod didn't really like the extremist faction for a number of reasons. This might get interesting soon.  
  
Several Nod technicians were working in the control room. On many screens were images of a massive missile. It was one of the ballistic missile targeted at the extremist main base. The silo was an underground one and a large Nod base protected it. A message was received by the communications officer. It was for the colonel in charge. "Sir, I have a message from Nod Command," he said. "Send it up here," said the colonel. "Yes sir." The colonel turned typed in her password into the computer. Her eyes went wide. They were now ordered to Defensive Condition 2. That meant that they had to get the missile to launch readiness. "Activate the missile," she ordered. That surprised the entire staff. All of them were the new breed of Nod soldiers. "I've just received orders from Command that we are at Defensive Condition 2," she explained, "It seems that the extremist mutant faction might actually start something." The technicians accepted this and went to work. If the mutants wanted a fight, they would get one.  
  
Alarms blurred throughout the installation. All the non-combatant personnel went down to the shelters. Then, another alarm started blurring. It was a missile attack. That meant that all soldiers were also to report to their shelters. Carol was getting worried. Richard still wasn't down yet, but he probably was taking personal command of the situation. Several SAM sites appeared and took aim. A squadron of Banshee fighters appeared and started climbing. The radar officers saw a large missile approach them. However, this missile was familiar. It was a multi-projectile missile, similar to the ones that the Brotherhood used. It was aimed for the Tiberium silos. They notified the commanding officers. Those officers ordered an immediate evacuation. Several underground trains began loading the personnel. Missiles took off from the SAM sites. However, they fell short. The Banshees opened fire. However, the missile split just before their plasma blasts hit. One of the five missiles was taken out. The SAM sites opened fire again. Two more missiles were taken out. Another was taken down by a lucky shot from a Banshee. Then, the missile impacted on one of the Tiberium Silos. A small explosion ruptured the silo and caused a reaction from the Tiberium in the silo. Several officers were puzzled at why the explosion was so small. Then, they realized why. The missile was a chemical multi-projectile missile. They immediately shouted for more units to help in the evacuation. However, the gas had reached one of the shelters and several scientists and soldiers were already affected. Some fell while others tried to help each other to escape. Richard was watching all this. He recognized one of the people trying to escape. It was Carol. He ran out of the command deck and down to the lockers. He put on a protective suit, made sure it was secure, and ran out. Carol had nearly collapsed. Another scientist was helping her, but he was about to fall as well. Richard took both of them and pulled them inside. "Carol, you okay?" he was desperate. If Carol died, there was no way in hell he would let any member of the extremists survive. She was unconscious. Medical officers arrived. They took Carol down to the hospital immediately. Richard followed them, trying to make sure that Carol was still alive. Umagon watched as several people were pushed by her room down to operating rooms. She wasn't exactly sure what the commotion was about. "What is that about?" she asked. She hadn't been evacuated yet. "Mutants," the nurse said it as if it was a curse to be one of them, "They launched a chemical missile at us. A lot of our officers have been affected." Umagon was horrified. She had never expected her fellow mutants to actually use such a barbaric form of attack. "We're safe here," said the nurse, "The entire hospital is designed to prevent Tiberium gas from getting in." "I'm sorry," said Umagon. "You have no reason to be sorry," said the nurse, "You aren't responsible for this attack. However, the people who perpetrated this will suffer for it."  
  
Richard was pacing outside the operations room. After about two hours, the doctor finally came out. "She's going to be fine," he said, "We were lucky she was only exposed for a short amount of time. Any longer, and the child would not have survived." "What!" "You didn't know? Your wife is pregnant." The only thing that kept Richard from going into a rage that the mutants had nearly killed his child was that his wife was actually pregnant. The last time they had made love was three weeks ago, so it must have been recent. "How has the child been affected?" he asked. "There was some poisoning, but everything checks out," said the doctor, "Don't worry, there are no mutations. We made sure of that. We've also administered several drugs that helps with destroying the Tiberium poison." "Thank you," said Richard, "One more thing. A boy or girl?" "Girl," said the doctor, "Congratulations general." Richard smiled in relief. However, he realized how close he had been in losing his family. He went down to the command center. He went into his office and contacted the Forgotten leadership. "I am going to launch my missiles at the renegade base," he said, "This is your last chance to tell me if that base is actually yours and not the extremists'." "That base is not ours," said the mutant leader. The other leaders nodded their agreement. "Very well," said Richard, "I appreciate your cooperation." He then went back out to the command deck. "Order the launch," he said to one of the colonels. The colonel nodded and immediately sent out the message. The three missile sites would receive them and launch their ballistic missiles to turn the mutant base to rubble. 


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3  
  
Richard was at the Nod Broadcasting Center. He was about to make a speech that everyone around the world was about to see. He received the cue. "Ladies and gentlemen," he began, "The Brotherhood of Nod signed a peace treaty with the Global Defensive Initiative and the Forgotten three years ago. We have abided by that treaty. However, now, renegade mutant forces have declared war on us. They fired a multi-projectile chemical warhead at us, which nearly took out the Tiberium storage facilities at our labs. Those labs are the places where we have been developing treatments and studying Tiberium. We also have a hospital facility here, and there we treat Tiberium poisoned patients. It was only because of the heavy armor that our silos have that prevented an explosion that would have destroyed that area and killed hundreds of our scientists, soldiers, and patients. However, the renegade mutants not only used a missile on us, they used a chemical weapon. That is a weapon of mass destruction, and since they used it, we will respond in kind. We have no kind of problem with GDI or the Forgotten, but we will not tolerate an attack on our facilities." He signed off and went back to base. He needed to see Carol with his own eyes to assure himself that she was okay.  
  
McNeil was not happy. The renegade mutants had used chemical weapons on Nod. The new Nod was something he was beginning to like. They had even made progress in repaying for all the crimes they had perpetrated. GDI would also not tolerate the use of such a weapon. They would support Nod in this one for sure.  
  
Luklas, the new leader of the Forgotten, was in a similar mood. Nod had been actually helping the Forgotten with several cases of extreme Tiberium poisoning and actually saving several lives. However, the extremists had gone to far. To use a chemical missile was simply unacceptable. If they expected that the rest of the Forgotten would support them, they were sadly mistaken.  
  
Richard sat next to the bed. He knew enough about medical stuff that he understood what the monitors were. So far, everything was stable and several things were improving. They had confirmed that she no longer had any Tiberium in her system through a series of tests. Also, the baby was fine as well. That was what he needed to know. However, he had to get back to work. There was work to be done. He had a war to conduct.  
  
The three Nod soldiers were eating dinner. They were in a base in Siberia. "Why the hell are we here?" one complained. "This is a ballistic missile site," another said, "We have to make sure no one tries to mess with it." "Who the hell is going to mess with us?" said the third. Then, the broadcast from Israel came through. That shut up the first and third officers. "Shit," said the second officer, "Those bastards." "Attacking a medical and science facility?" said the first, "I might understand a military installation, but the research facilities at Jerusalem? The people there are trying to help those mutants!" "Someone is going to pay for this," said the third. Just then, they heard the alarms for all personnel to clear the launch area. "What in the world? They're actually going to launch!" said the first. "They are so dead," said the third.  
  
Richard watched as the missiles approached the mutant base. A satellite was overhead and they were watching the activity in the mutant base. They must have been oblivious to what was about to happen. They even saw two large convoys enter the base and start unloading. It was quite obvious they were weapons. There was even three Tick Tanks on tank transporters. Two minutes until the missiles impacted. The mutants finally reacted. Their radar system must have finally detected them. However, it was too late. The ballistic missiles had the power of nuclear weapons without the radiation fallout. There was no way they would survive. Missiles took off from SAM sites, but the jamming systems ensured that they were unable to track the missiles. When the missiles landed, a massive explosion ripped the entire area apart. It was five minutes later that everything cleared and they were able to see the area. There was almost nothing left. Even the Tiberium in the sector had been destroyed. It was a radius of two and a half miles with nothing but a desolate desert where a lush grassland and forest had been. "Send in troops to sweep the area," Richard ordered, "Anyone still alive, kill them unless they aren't mutants or are children or mothers with children." "Yes sir," said the major. Richard then received a call from the doctor treating Carol. "Is everything all right?" he asked anxiously. "Well, we're not sure," said the doctor, "It seems that the baby was slightly affected. Nothing extreme or anything. We think it just changed the hair and eye color. However, your child might exhibit strange abilities or such." "But there is nothing harmful?" he asked. "No," doctor reassured him, "That is the only thing we think will happen." "Good," said Richard, "As long as nothing unhealthy happens." Richard hanged up.  
  
Carol woke in a hospital room. Her memory was a little fuzzy but she recalled what had happened. She remembered hearing voices during her time unconscious, but couldn't really make out what they said. Just then, a nurse came in. "You're awake," she said, "Doctor! Dr. Ross is awake!" A doctor hurried in. "Everything okay?" he asked. Carol nodded. "What about the other people?" "We're treating all of them," said the doctor, "They were exposed only for a short period of time, so we were able to save them all." "That's good," she said. "They have you to thank," said the doctor, "Some of the treatments we used were developed by you." Carol smiled at the comment. It was true. The doctor sent a message, probably to Richard since he ran in a few minutes later. "You okay?" he asked. Carol smiled and nodded. "That's good." The doctor and nurse had left. "Why didn't you tell me?" asked Richard. "About what?" "You're pregnant," he said. Carol gasped. It seemed even she hadn't known. Richard smiled. "It's a girl," he said. "But the chemicals!" she said. "The doctors say that there might be a hair and eye color difference, and that would be about it." Carol sighed in relief. "Everything's going to be okay," said Richard. He kissed her and got up. "I have to get back to work, but I'll come later," he said. Carol nodded. She knew what he meant. Nod was at war again, this time against the mutants. She just hoped they would win quickly.  
  
McNeil was watching am experiment with the new Chronosphere that GDI had built. A platoon of Titans disappeared and reappeared at another base exactly where they were supposed to be. It seemed that the Chronosphere worked. GDI scientists were checking for any disturbances in the timeline or if any chrono vortexes appeared. So far, everything was fine. If they could perfect the technology, they would have a powerful weapon to use against the Scrin. Just then, a lieutenant came into the observation deck. He handed McNeil a message. "Shit," he said. Nod had just taken out a renegade mutant base, the one they thought was the main one. The renegades had already lost an important part of their assets. GDI had already said they would support Nod in this one, as had the Forgotten. Now, they needed to see the reaction of the renegades.  
  
A large mutant army had been discovered. Forgotten Command had confirmed that it was a renegade force. Nod moved in to destroy the enemy army. They sent in their new Banshee bombers, which took out a large portion of the armored forces. Then, Banshee fighters moved in and swept the area. After that, Nod forces moved in. Rocket soldiers attacked the remaining Tick Tanks supported by their own Tick Tanks. Other armored forces moved in against the light armor. Attack Buggies attacked the infantry while Nod infantry mopped up. Suddenly, five Cyborg Commandos appeared and started blasting the Nod forces apart. Cyborg Reapers moved in on the infantry with Cyborgs using their guns to mow them down as they were trapped by the substance the Reapers sprayed. Several Buggies saw this and moved in to assist. They were destroyed by the Reaper's missiles. Then, something even worse happened. Two Core Defender robots, the same ones that Nod and GDI had faced during the final assault on Cabal's core, appeared. They stood up, dirt and rocks falling off their backs. The two Defenders opened fire and took out over half of the Nod armored forces in a few minutes. The Nod commander called a retreat. They were taking far too many casualties.  
  
Richard was not happy. There were only to effective ways to take out Core Defenders, and both required GDI technology. The first was using Disrupter Tanks to destroy them. The other was to use a Firestorm shield trap to destroy them. Nod was at a disadvantage here. They would have to start producing the Disrupter tanks en mass. Nod had captured enough Disrupter Tanks to know how to build them. Their prototypes had worked the way they should. Now, they would need to mass-produce them. Also, infantry divisions were being equipped with armor that was coated with a substance that neutralized the things that Cyborg Reapers sprayed. They also now were equipped with railguns. That would help level the playing field. The Mammoth Mark II tanks that Nod had were now being deployed. Now the only thing Nod had to do was figure out how the mutants had gotten cyborgs.  
  
Carol had been released from the hospital and went straight back to work. She still needed to help with the projects that were being run. Also, one of the scientists had a hypothesis to why Tiberium mutated things. "It isn't just the radiation that causes the mutations," he said, "Tiberium gives off its spores continuously after it has fully developed. When soldiers breathe in the spores, the spores basically start the mutations in order for them to survive. Now, for most people, the mutations happen too quickly and it kills them. For others, they mutate more slowly and they become the mutants we have now." "So we basically have Tiberium growing inside the people who have been infected?" she asked. "Something like that," said the doctor, "Tiberium can't develop into the form we know it has out here in our bodies, so it changes into another form, that of a symbiote. It basically starts changing the body into a Tiberium based life form." "So how do we stop this?" asked Carol. "Attack the Tiberium inside the patient's body," answered the doctor, "That's what we did with you. We figured out this idea and used it. It was a bit tricky to actually develop a treatment, but it worked. Also, we know what Tiberium spores look like and that helped." "Well, I guess I owe the life of my daughter and myself to you." "Partly. There are other people who helped come up with this idea and develop a treatment."  
  
The research team for the Tiberium vein came back two weeks later. They had actually dissected one of the dead vein creatures GDI had killed. They brought back the organs and some things they weren't too sure about. "So this may be another evolutionary form of Tiberium," said Carol, "It also has a stomach, but it takes in organic substances as well. However, this time, it uses the organic substances to produce the veins. It has a second stomach that creates the Tiberium waste gas as a second defensive measure. The veins are hell on anything bigger than a Wolverine, so they are weight and pressure sensitive. The Tiberium waste produced in the second stomach is then combined with the products of the first stomach to create the veins that can spread throughout a large area unless the mouth is killed." "We aren't sure about several organs," said one of the scientists, "We have what we think is its heart, since there are what we believe to be blood vessels and such connected to it. However, it has no muscles. It seems to depend upon something else to actually push the blood, or whatever it is, around the organism." "We also have what might constitute as a brain," said another scientist, "There are nerves connected to it and impulses are sent from it. It is very similar to the brain of the Visceroid, but is a bit more advanced." "Once we've gathered everything we need, we should advise GDI to kill them," said Carol, "These things might evolve as well." "Yes ma'am," said another scientist.  
  
The new defensive measures for the silos had been installed. Every one of them was moved underground into a well-armored bunker. Nod was not taking any chances that the silos might explode. That would be disastrous. 


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4  
  
Richard could not believe what he was hearing. It seemed that Cabal had survived once again, and because Cabal had survived, that meant Kane had as well. "Do we have his location?" he asked. "Yes," said Rebecca, "However, the base is protected by a massive mutant and cyborg army. He also has Firestorm defenses and five Core Defenders. There is no way we can launch a frontal assault." "Ballistic missiles," said Richard, "Will they work?" "No," said Kristoph, "That area is filled with jamming equipment. Also, their sensors are sensitive enough that our stealth systems onboard the missiles will not help. They'll be shot down before they hit." "What about the Ion Cannon?" suggested Robert. The other generals looked at him. Robert actually had a good idea. "I'll contact McNeil," said Richard, "See what I can do. How long before our Positron Cannon is online?" "Two weeks," said Kristoph, "before it is fully installed. However, we need another month to finish with the Tiberium reactor." "Then GDI has the playing field," said Richard, "Mobilize our forces and begin attacking any renegade force we know of if it is feasible. Let's get to work." The generals got up and left. Richard went back to his office and contacted McNeil. "Yes General?" "General McNeil, I don't think we took out Cabal." "What!" "My forces have located another Cabal Core in renegade mutant territory," said Richard, "We don't have anything to attack it with, and our Positron Cannon isn't ready yet. We request that you use your Ion Cannon to take the place out." "We're going to need the exact coordinates for this," said McNeil, "This time, we're making sure that Cabal is dead." "We can't really do that," said Richard, "It might decide to slip away into some other computer. However, we can set it back again. We'll end the threat it poses towards us when we find a way to control Tiberium." "Very well," said McNeil, "We'll look into it and decide whether to use the Ion Cannon or not."  
  
It had been two hours since the disturbing news General Conner had sent GDI. Now, the Philadelphia II was right above the coordinates. The whole area was blanketed with stealth fields, but the new advanced sensors were able to see through it all. They found Cabal's core easily. It was the largest structure, a pyramid structure. It was like the Nod Pyramid at the Cairo site, but it only had three sides and was three times as large. "There are several battalions of cyborgs," said Eva, "supported by Tick Tanks and Titans. I am also detecting a large mutant presence." "So the mutants have allied with Cabal," said McNeil, "Eva, target the area with our primary Ion Cannon. Open fire when ready." "Yes sir." The Ion Cannon opened up and took aim. It charged up and fired upon the base. A massive particle beam struck the pyramid. After the light receded, Eva showed the result. "What is this!" screamed McNeil. The rest of the command staff was stunned as well. The dirt and grass had been destroyed, as well as most of the surface structures. However, the pyramid was still intact. Beside that, the Obelisks of Light were also intact. The pyramid extended underground and was attached to a gray colored structure which ran across the area. The obelisks were also attached to the structure. "Fire again!" ordered McNeil. Two other Ion satellites in position opened fire. They hit the structure, but only made scratches. They also didn't really affect the structure. "Give me an assessment," said McNeil. "The entire mountain area was decimated and destroyed," said Eva, "There aren't any mountains left actually. However, the structure has not been damaged." "What about the defenses?" asked McNeil, "What is the status of the air and land defenses?" "The surface SAM sites have all been destroyed," said Eva, "as have the ones in the mountains. However, I am detecting other SAM sites under the structure. All of the laser defenses are still online. Also, the Core Defenders are still online. The surface military forces are also destroyed." "Can your sensors penetrate the armor of the structure?" asked McNeil. "No. General, I have General Conner wanting to talk with you." "Put him through," ordered McNeil. Richard appeared with his command center behind him. "What the hell is that!" he said. "We have no idea," said McNeil, "Try launching your ballistic missiles." "Won't do a thing," said Richard, "They aren't more powerful than your Ion Cannons. If they didn't work, then our missiles won't do much either." "We can try sending soldiers in," suggested McNeil. "Are the air defenses all taken out?" asked Richard. "No," said McNeil, "However, the fact is that their air defenses are hidden under the armor of the structure." "We can dig our way to their base," said Richard, "but how do we deal with their Obelisks?" "A joint operation," said McNeil, "However, we'll need some time to plan it." "The Philadelphia is better equipped to deal with these kind of battles," said Richard, "As is the Kodiak II. Mind if I join you up there?" "Actually trust us?" "This is about Cabal," said Richard. McNeil nodded. "Very well. We'll use the Kodiak II as our mobile command center. You have control over it. The terms are that you can bring some technicians on, but my officers control weapons and navigation." "Fine by me," said Richard.  
  
Richard boarded the Kodiak with ten officers and five technicians. They took off. Two Nod divisions were moving in. Nod had already fired dozens of EMP Cannons at the Obelisks and hoped they were disabled. Actually, they had saturated the entire area with EMPs. Now, they just needed to see if that did anything. GDI Orca Bombers were moving in to attack the surface. Their primary targets would be the Obelisks and any air defenses GDI had detected. Phantom Fighters would support them. Banshee Bombers and Fighters would also assist. After twenty minutes of pounding the area, they hoped that the defenses were somewhat neutralized. Three Obelisks had destroyed but the other seventeen were still there. Subterranean APCs appeared and unloaded their soldiers. These were all Nod Stealth Soldiers. They quickly placed C-5 charges on the remaining Obelisks and blew them. They were able to take out two more. They moved in towards the pyramid. GDI Dropships appeared and landed. Titans and Disrupter Tanks appeared. The Disrupters took position by the Obelisks, ready to start blasting once they activated. It wasn't long. A few minutes after the Titans had all appeared the Obelisks started firing. The Disrupters opened fire but they were blasted as well. The Titans opened fire and a total of five more Obelisks were destroyed before they stopped firing. GDI reinforcements arrived. Forgotten soldiers also came. Several Ghost Stalkers were with them. They fired on the Obelisks. It took twenty more minutes to destroy the last of the Obelisks. GDI infantry moved in. They followed the Stealth Soldiers and mutant soldiers down. The massive circular chamber, which troops entered when they first went into the ship, was like nothing they had ever seen before. Eight large columns supported the chamber. A squad of GDI troops entered the chamber from outside. Suddenly, laser defenses activated. The soldiers present in the room opened fire. However, their rifles were of no affect. Then, twenty Nod soldiers rushed in. They were equipped with railguns and opened fire. The lasers were taken out. The lead Stealth soldiers soon ran into five Cyborg Commandos. There was a fierce firefight for several minutes before they were destroyed. Three Stealth Soldiers lay dead. Mutant forces started upward with GDI troops in toll. They ran into fellow mutants but didn't hesitate to open fire. They kept fighting their way upwards. Suddenly, they ran into defenses. Several small laser cannons appeared and opened fire. The leading mutants were cut down. The soldiers behind them opened fire, but the lasers were too well armored. Three Nod Rocket Soldiers were present and went up. They opened fire and took out the lasers. The force proceeded. More GDI Dropships arrived. This time, they disgorged Tactical Wolverines and Titans. It seemed that the Firestorm Taskforce would handle this one. Then, the Dragon, the command ship of the Firestorm Taskforce, came into sight. Several SAM sites appeared and opened fire, but the shields of the Dragon absorbed them. The ground troops immediately opened fire and took out the SAM sites that had appeared.  
  
Carol was tired. They had finally found the basic genetic keys to the Tiberium plant. Using that, they had developed a virus that was harmful to all Tiberium based life forms. So far, they had tests on the Tiberium plant, Fiend, vein creature, and Visceroid. The life forms had all died. Another department was working on a virus that would mutate the infected cells back to their original forms. They had just tested it on several patients, and things looked good. Some final adjustments were being made and a few more tests were being run, but soon they would be able to mass- produce the vaccine and the virus. They had found a way to defeat Tiberium.  
  
More and more troops poured into the structure. They were meeting more and more stiff resistance. They had found several rooms where strange silos stored Tiberium. GDI had established a base at the site and was bringing more troops in. Nod had also sent in more troops. They kept going in. Suddenly, twenty Core Defenders appeared. The GDI commander swore, knowing that his troops would most likely not be able to defeat them. The Tactical Titans opened fire with everything they had. The Wolverines ran closer and opened fire. Inside the structure, cyborgs like nothing anyone had ever seen before appeared. They were as big as Cyborg Commandos, but were faster, tougher, and almost impossible to kill. They started driving out the Nod, GDI, and Forgotten forces. One of the Core Defenders finally fell. GDI had already lost twenty Wolverines and twelve Titans. That was when the commander saw that their troops were running out of the structure. He signaled a retreat. Nod Subterranean APCs loaded as many soldiers in as possible, GDI Dropships landed and took up the armored units and soldiers, and GDI APCs loaded up more troops and started to run. The mysterious cyborg units started coming out. They opened fire on the last few soldiers trying to escape, killing most of them. The mutants had already disappeared. After the alliance forces had left, the Philadelphia opened fire with their primary Ion Cannon. Most of the cyborg units were destroyed, as were two other Core Defenders. However, the structure was still not damaged. 


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5  
  
The Philadelphia II had been in geo-synchronized orbit for three months. It was over the sector where the mysterious structure was. The remaining Core Defenders were in their offline positions. More Obelisks of Light appeared to replace the ones destroyed. A fleet of GDI Phantoms and Nod Banshees were ready to attack at a moment's notice. The Kodiak, the Dragon, and the Scorpion were standing by to assist if necessary. The NTTL had begun distributing the vaccines. Currently, seventy-nine percent of the Forgotten population had been cured. They had to do this in stages as the people who got vaccinated were kept hospitalized at the NTTL. The last group had left. In two more weeks, they would have ninety-four percent of the Forgotten vaccinated. Nod had already started using the virus. All of Russia was now rid of Tiberium. In Africa and the Middle East, they still allowed large amounts of Tiberium to be grown, but they did it in controlled environments in massive bio-domes. Wild Tiberium was becoming rare in Nod territory. GDI had allowed Nod to send scientists and experts into their territory to begin rectifying the Tiberium problem there. Most of North America would soon be free of Tiberium. GDI was also building large bio-domes to grow Tiberium. Soon, they would be able to solve the Tiberium problem. However, the Cabal problem was another thing entirely.  
  
"The Positron Cannon is fully operational," said Richard. He was in a meeting with Generals McNeil, Langley, and White. "We can fire upon that structure now." "What effect will it have?" asked McNeil. "We don't know," said Richard, "Our simulations and calculations never accounted for such a high energy ratio. Actually, we never thought the Tiberium reactor could provide so much power." "So we might be able to blast Cabal to pieces?" said William. "Correct," said Richard, "However, we aren't completely sure." "Let's give it a try," said William, "We have nothing more to lose." Everyone present nodded. The Brotherhood had the agreement of GDI to fire.  
  
The Philadelphia moved out of the way and the Revelation moved into position. This took about three hours. McNeil still had a good view of Cabal's base. The Revelation charged up its cannon. Technicians watched nervously as all that power was focused in the cannon. After two tense minutes, everything was ready. "Fire," ordered Richard. The Positron Cannon fired a massive beam down to Cabal's base. The energy output was off the scales of nearly every sensor. Everyone looked away from the image so as not to burn their eyes. After it faded, they looked back at the monitor. Incredibly, the base was still there. The entire area had been basically destroyed, and the structure now was resting in a crater three miles wide. Its actual shape was revealed. The pyramid was on a large platform in the shape of a six-edged star. "Shit," said Richard, "Eva, evaluation." They were currently on the Philadelphia. "What can I say? Your Positron Cannon destroyed the entire region including a lot of my sensors. What we have here is a nearly invincible structure." "Give me an assessment!" roared Richard. "Okay. I detect high amounts of radiation coming out of the structure. It is possible we managed to do some damage. However, it is so little that it really doesn't matter." Then, the structure started to lift off. "That thing's a ship!" said McNeil. "Fire again!" ordered Richard. "Sir! I'm detecting alien ships appearing from behind the moon." The monitor changed to a view of the moon. A large fleet appeared. "The last time the Scrin came, they had colony ships," said Richard, "I think those are their warships." "Shit. All GDI Space Command units, deploy and prepare to engage the enemy," ordered McNeil. "Nod Missile Command," said Richard, "Activate all ballistic missiles and prepare to fire on my command. Nod Space Command, activate and prepare to attack." GDI Phantoms and Nod Banshees appeared and went into orbit. The three command ships of GDI and Nod also appeared. The Scorpion moved towards a location where it could offer support. "The Cabal ship is approaching orbit," reported Eva. "Revelation, hit it again," ordered Richard. The Positron Cannon charged up again. With the Tiberium reactor, they were able to generate enough energy to fire a second time at the same power level. A few seconds later, the Revelation opened fire. It struck the Cabal ship, but all it did was seem to slightly knock it off balance. "Revelation, use secondary weapons!" The station lit up as missiles took off. They struck the Cabal ship, creating quite a lightshow. However, they didn't seem to affect it either. "Fire again!" The Positron Cannon fired again. However, it still didn't do too much. More missiles struck the Cabal ship. "Damn it!" screamed Richard. "Eva, fire the primary Ion Cannon at that ship," McNeil ordered. The Ion Cannon struck the Cabal ship. Still, it did nothing. "That's it," said Richard, "Revelation, deploy the Omega." The Positron Cannon seemed to retract into the station. However, that was a mistake. Several components appeared and locked onto the cannon. It then started charging again. "What the hell is that?" asked McNeil. "It's a large scale amplifier," said Richard, "It will more than quadruple the power of the Positron Cannon, if it works." "And you didn't tell us about it!" yelled McNeil. "We never actually planned to use it," said Richard, "We never thought we would need it." "Sir, I'm detecting a lot of EM energy from the cannon," said Eva. "A side affect of using the amplifier," said Richard. "It also disables, or at least partly, electronics. All right. Fire!" The Positron Cannon fired a massive beam. This one was a dark blue color. It hit dead center on the pyramid. The explosion was incredible. After it cleared, the ship was still there. However, sparks were starting to show. The ships started to go down. However, it was a controlled descent. It hadn't completely reached orbit and landed back about where it originally was. "Send in teams to take that thing before it takes off again," said Richard, "Make sure they're equipped with railguns and particle weapons." More GDI and Nod ground troops appeared. They began storming the ship. "What's the status on the enemy fleet?" asked McNeil. "Two more minutes before contact," said Eva. "Revelation, deactivate the Omega," ordered Richard, "Run a basic system check to see if we can still us the Positron Cannon. After this is over, do a full maintenance check." "Jeez," said McNeil, "That's one hell of a powerful weapon." Richard grunted. They still had a battle to conduct. "Sir, the Positron Cannon can still fire," said a Nod officer. "Good," said Richard, "Aim and fire upon enemy warships when they are in range." The alien ships soon started opening fire. Nod and GDI fighters flew around the ships, firing their own weapons. The Positron and Ion Cannons were let loose. The alien warships here were not strong enough to withstand the blasts. Then the missiles launched by Nod reached the enemy ships. That took out even more. "Just like three years ago," said Richard. McNeil nodded. The alien ships this time fought to the death. It took three hours before they finally destroyed the last warship.  
  
Stealth Soldiers advanced slowly into the Cabal ship. They had already encountered possibly two hundred of the second generation Cyborg Commandos. They were nearing some sort of chamber. One of the GDI demolition experts placed several charges and ran back. He hit the button and the door shattered. No fire greeted them. The Stealth Soldiers entered first. Here they found a large room with tanks filled with a greenish liquid. Each one of them contained a Kane. They would leave this to the science officers. They ensured that no traps were present and moved on. Mutant soldiers had finally reached the command deck. However, the Cyborg Commandos here were fighting viscously. They were taking dreadful loses. Then, two GDI Firestorm officers appeared. Both had advanced particle weapons. They opened fire on several Commandos and took them out with one shot. Two GDI hackers interfaced with the door controls and opened it. The command deck was empty. The Nod soldiers with the assault team recognized the controls and codes. They were Nod. The technology was incredibly advanced, but they figured most of the things out. Another assault team was making their way down. They had only encountered mutant soldiers so far. Then they found a large door. The hackers were unable to open the door. The Ghost Stalker set several charges and blew the door. When the smoke cleared, nearly everyone but the Stealth Soldiers gasped. They just cursed. Inside was a small army of humanoid/reptilian creatures. "Welcome to our ship, humans," one said. "They're the Scrin!" shouted a mutant. Everyone opened fire. The bullet weapons, including the railguns, were completely ineffective. The particle weapons the Stealth Soldiers had cut several down. They started retreating. Several GDI and Nod soldiers requested backup with more particle weapons. They ran for about ten minutes before some of that backup arrived. They made a stand and were able to slaughter the first wave of Scrin warriors. Another large base had been set up at the ship site. More and more infantry arrived. Nod had already sent in some of their scientists, but they weren't allowed to enter because of the Scrin situation. "Shit! Fall back!" The assault team retreated. They were being attacked by Scrins carrying Tiberium weapons. Two other assault teams appeared and counterattacked. More and more teams appeared and joined in the attack. Finally, the Scrin were being pushed back. Two Ghost Stalkers opened fire on a group of Scrins. Their particle weapons cut through the entire group. The mutant soldiers behind them stood up. Their weapons were completely ineffective and they had to rely on the two Ghost Stalkers with them. Then, more Scrins appeared and attacked. The mutants fell back. More soldiers went down. The fight for the pyramid and entrance level was complete. They controlled those sectors. Now, they had to take out all of the Scrins. GDI and Nod hackers had managed to actually capture Cabal. They activated defenses and were helping in locating and destroying Scrins. The Stealth Soldiers had fought all the way down to the room where they had first found the Scrins. The chamber led down to what they thought was the engine room. The engine room had a huge tube that stretched up and down for a very long way. The Scrins kept retreating. With the arrival of more troops equipped with particle weapons, they were beginning to be outnumbered and outgunned. It took three weeks of fighting before they were able to finally kill every single Scrin. It took another week to fully assess the situation and to decide who would get to study the incredible ship. Nod and GDI scientists began picking the ship apart.  
  
Nod and GDI forces paraded through the second capital of the United Nations, Washington D.C. It had been rebuilt after the Tiberium had been cleared out. The Nod Stealth Soldiers were the first ones since they were the soldiers that led the attack on the Cabal ship and finally taking control of it. Eight months had passed since the second Battle of Earth. General McNeil, General Langley, and Dr. Boudreau rode together. General Conner, Dr. Ross, and their baby daughter were in another car. A Nod Tick Tank followed them. It was the new generation model. This one didn't burrow, but had a secondary weapon, a particle weapon. A third vehicle carried Umagon and Luklas. They headed to the new Capitol building. Its design was similar to the old one, but was more modern. There, the United Nations council met. The leaders of GDI, Nod, and the Forgotten were going to sign a new treaty. With the destruction of a second invasion, the United Nations was more willing to accept Nod as a sovereign power. An alliance of the Brotherhood of Nod, the United Nations, and the Forgotten was about to be formed. They arrived and were taken into the main chamber. McNeil made the first speech. "The first time I saw extreme action against Nod was during the Second Tiberium War," he said, "That was in 2030. It was a bloody long war, in which we won. I fought that war with General William Langley, who was a crucial member of the command staff. Then, General Langley led the fight against Cabal. After we won that war, we continued fighting Nod. Then, Kane returned ten years later. At that time, I had become supreme commander of GDI. General Richard Conner sent a message, in somewhat unconventional methods through his future wife." McNeil glanced at Richard and Carol. Carol smiled. She remembered the fright that she had received when the Nod agent had given her the message. "That message reached General Langley and through him to me. That message started a full revolution in Nod itself. General Conner rebelled against Kane and used his considerable influences and power in the Nod hierarchy to help us. He fought against Kane and kept his side of the agreement we made. After that, GDI signed a treaty with Nod, even if the United Nations didn't really acknowledge it." There was a quiet laughter that spread throughout the council. "Now, three years later, he has to fight renegade mutants that had allied with Cabal, in essence Kane, and the Scrin race. The Nod Positron Cannon played a very important part in defeating the Scrin. Now, it is my honor to present General Richard Conner, leader of the new Brotherhood of Nod!" Applause echoed throughout the chamber. Richard took the podium and began his speech. "Originally, I believed that Kane was a messiah. That was one of the ideas that attracted me to the Brotherhood. In the Brotherhood, I rose quickly through the ranks. My intelligence and strategies impressed many people, including Anton Slavik. I became his second in command. I fought GDI as well as Cabal. However, in the end, I discovered the truth behind Kane and Cabal. I am a man of honor, and I could not follow a leader who did not care for his followers. So I rebelled against him. I have been trying to remake the Brotherhood into something else than a cold heartless tool for destruction. Today, the Brotherhood is even more powerful. We trade openly with the United Nations and the Forgotten. We fight to ensure order and peace. After all this, we have finally achieved what I wanted. A unified Brotherhood, not built upon power, deceit, and evil, but one built on order, cooperation, and honor. That is why this alliance is something I support. The Scrin may yet come back. And who knows what else is out there? We have to be ready." The audience applauded again. Richard sat down and Umagon took the podium. "I once also fought against the Brotherhood, and, I'm quite sure that General McNeil remembers, I also fought against him once. However, I have seen the good that the new Brotherhood has done, and I am willing to start to forgive it for the past crimes it did to my people. We should remember the past, but we should not condemn because of it. The new Brotherhood of Nod cured many of my people, and has so far defeated Tiberium. Without them, we would have been too late to save our planet." Again, applause swept throughout the audience. General McNeil, General Conner, and Luklas signed their names on the new treaty. Everything was set for the future.  
  
Two months had passed since the signing of the treaty. Richard walked onto the balcony. Carol was breastfeeding Rebecca. The doctors were right. Rebecca had red eyes and the hair she had now was a light blue. However, besides that, there was nothing else different. After she was full, Rebecca fell asleep. Carol carried her inside with Richard behind them. She put her down in her bed and pulled the cover over. Richard hugged her from behind. "She's as beautiful as her mother." Carol smiled. "Then she'll probably act like her father." "You mean honorable, loving, and protective?" said Richard. "No, I mean calm, gentle, and smart." "Hum, those are good too." Carol settled into Richard's arms. "Project Orion is almost finished," said Richard. Carol nodded. Project Orion was a joint expedition in which the United Nations, the Forgotten, and Nod would attempt send a colonization ship to Mars. There were already two stations on the moon but those weren't real colonies. Mars had a source of water so it was chosen to be the first site of human colonization. A large space ship had been built. It looked like the Philadelphia but was designed to be a place to live. They were hoping to land a few miles from the North Pole and establish a colony. The oxygen and water would be gathered from the ice and they were going to attempt to start terraforming the planet. Some people thought it a bit ambitious, but the people who were in charge of the expedition thought it was quite possible. Also, the GDI Chronosphere could be used to send supplies to the colonists. "So what new projects have the NTTL started?" asked Richard. The NTTL was as busy as ever. They were in charge of all of the Tiberium farms that Nod controlled. They continued studying Tiberium and developed new technology that utilized it. Carol wouldn't start going to work for a few more months, but she still kept tabs on what was happening. "Well, we fixed the bugs in the new Tiberium breeder reactor," she said. "I never figured out how you can create Tiberium from Tiberium," said Richard. Carol smiled. She knew that Richard only wanted to hear her talk. He had taken a liking to her voice ever since she had started singing, and always wanted to hear it. She was quite happy to oblige, so she went on about the Tiberium breeding reactor.  
  
Well, that's it. It took a while to write, but heck, I've got nothing better to do in China. Read and review. See ya!  
  
Z98 


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